Walking The Walk And Talking The Talk
Brian Cox
            "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.  Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”  Matthew 5:14-16

            “For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake.”  2 Corinthians 4:5

            Do you find it difficult to share your faith with your friends?  For years I have heard many say that they find it impossible to share their faith with their friends because they don’t know enough.  They don’t know how to share their faith and they don’t feel confident enough in their knowledge of the Bible.  They fear that they might be asked a question that they cannot answer.  There is no one right method with which to share this good news about Jesus.  There are many ways to share the gospel.  We are all different and those we share this good news with are all different.  Therefore many different methods will be useful in our mission to serve our friends.  We have seen many methods come and go over the years, much like clothing styles and fads come and go.  Each new method was heralded as being the one that would bring many to Christ.  We assumed that if we could just find the right method everyone or at least most that we approached using this method would give their lives to Jesus.  When that didn’t happen we soon discarded that method in favour of another new method that was on the horizon.  Surely by now we have learned that methods don’t save anyone Jesus does that.

            Seeking to know God’s Word (the Bible) better so as to be able to answer the questions of honest searchers is indeed a worthy quest.  Yet many have been in situations where the gospel was shared in all its glory and all the questions were lovingly and carefully answered and the decision was made to reject Christ.  Neither the right method nor the ability to answer every question that might be asked assures a positive outcome.

            Perhaps you are hindered in sharing the Gospel because your friends, school mates, or work mates don’t know that you are a follower of Christ.  You fear their rejection or their mockery if you were to make an effort to share your faith.  Do you really want them as friends if they would mock what is at the centre of your being?

            Are you hindered in sharing the good news because you aren’t walking the walk and fear that your friends would point out your hypocrisy?  While it is important to “let our light shine” and be a good example for others, we are perfected only by the grace of God, we share the gospel one sinner to another.

            Letting our light shine is important, few will ever listen to the gospel until they have seen the light in our lives.  How will anyone see the light in our lives if we keep it carefully hidden in our church buildings?  We must leave the confines of our buildings and move into our communities, letting our light shine for Jesus.
            There are many needs and thus many opportunities where we can serve.  I couldn’t possibly list them all in this short article; however let me mention one.  I am told that 20% of the children in Canada are often hungry.  We live in one of the richest countries of the world yet 20% of our children are hungry.  The causes for this hunger are many and varied.  Everything from a simple lack of money to poor parental priorities in how the limited funds are spent.  We have a wonderful opportunity to practice the love of Jesus and let our light shine for Jesus as we feed these hungry children.  Do not say that there are no hungry children where you live, with 20% of our children being hungry there are hungry children in every community.  You many not have seen them but you probably haven’t gone looking for them either.  You may find it helpful to partner with others that are already serving in this area and learn from them.

            You may find as I have that these children are not just hungry for food but are also starving for attention, and have a need for positive adult role models.  They don’t just want you to feed them, they want you to spend time with them, talk with them, listen to them and validate them.  You walk the walk by feeding the hungry, by talking with them, spending time with them, listening to them and validating them.

            You have walked the walk and now it is time to talk the talk, to share the good news about Jesus with those you care about.  Where do you begin?  What do you do?  What do you say?  How do you start? 

            Begin with prayer!  Pray for your friends, ask God to open their hearts to the gospel, pray for other needs in their lives.  Pray that God will give you words and a humble spirit with which to share.  Begin where your friends are, do they have a present need in their lives, a crisis or problem?  If so you might be able to share with them how God helped you in a similar situation.  The gospel can also be your story as you share how you came to Christ, share your journey from being lost feeling empty and in despair, until Jesus came and saved you and filled you with his love and joy.

            Be patient, one conversation may change a life but not always.  Allow your friends time to think on their own about what you have shared with them.  They may come back to you with more questions after they have had time to think.  Continue to pray for them, ask God to work on their hearts and to open their minds to His good news.  Pray that God will give you wisdom and patience as you share what is most important in your life with those who are important to you. 

            I pray that God will bless you as you seek to walk the walk and talk the talk.  – BMC